Morality Bites
Morality Bites ' is the 24th episode of ''Charmed, and the second episode in Season 2. Episode Recap Synopsis When Phoebe has a vision of herself being burnt to death, the sisters travel ten years into the future to learn what happened. Only to discover that she used her powers to kill Cal Greene, causing a local D.A. named Nathanial Pratt to begin modern day witch trials as a platform for political office. Meanwhile, Prue and Piper try to save Phoebe, but they both are surprised and somewhat disappointed to learn how their lives turned out.When Phoebe has a vision of herself being burnt to death, the sisters travel ten years into the future to learn what happened. Only to discover that she used her powers to kill Cal Greene, causing a local D.A. named Nathanial Pratt to begin modern day witch trials as a platform for political office. Meanwhile, Prue and Piper try to save Phoebe, but they both are surprised and somewhat disappointed to learn how their lives turned out. Full Recap Prue and Phoebe are in the kitchen when Piper comes in carrying groceries and complaining that she stepped in dog droppings. Some guy has apparently been allowing his dog to do it's business all over the neighborhood, and suddenly the girls hear a dog bark. They run to the window and see him allowing his dog to do his business at the front of their driveway. Phoebe suggests that they should use their magic to teach him his lesson; Piper freezes him and Prue flicks the dog droppings onto his shoe. They momentarily joke about whether or not the man saw them before parting, Prue and Piper to the kitchen to make coffee and Phoebe to watch TV. When Phoebe pauses on the news channel giving a headline about baseball player Cal Green she has a premonition of her future self being burnt alive while Prue and Piper watch. She screams and Piper and Prue come running to help. Piper and Prue are trying to calm Phoebe down while figuring out what triggered the premonition when the doorbell rings. Piper answers it. It’s Leo, he has the day off since the Elders are making him work that evening and he wants to spend it with her. She declines because of Phoebe’s situation, and he suddenly gets a call from the Elders and kisses her as he orbs out. In the attic Leo is flipping the pages of the Book of Shadows by himself and he orbs out just before the girls enter. The book is open to a spell to go forward in time and they determine that is what they must do to save Phoebe. They do the ritual and disappear. Piper wakes up in the manor in her future body and a girl is entering the room calling her “Mommy.” This confuses Piper, but she has little time to think as the girl hears a horn honk and runs to get her backpack for school. The girl calls to Piper, and at the door another mom is picking up Piper’s daughter and she verifies that she should take the girl to Piper’s ex-husband's house after school. Piper decides that is the best course of action and just as the girl is ready to leave she whispers a promise to her mother that she will never use her powers again. A limo pulls up as soon as the girl disappears and a blonde Prue steps out of it followed by an entourage. Prue now owns Bucklands and is excited to hear about how Piper’s future self has turned out. They discuss why they are in their future bodies and not just observing them, like when they traveled to the past. Apparently traveling to the future is different than going to the past. They realize this means Phoebe’s life really is in jeopardy. On the TV a man named Nathaniel Pratt vows that he will hunt down and rid the world of witches. Piper and Prue enter the attic and are surprised that the book is no longer on its pedestal. Prue begins gesturing emphatically and suddenly an entire side of the attic is nearly destroyed; obviously, her power has grown. Piper sees that the pedestal has overturned and at the bottom is a key to Prue’s safe at Bucklands. They decide that their next course of action should be to head to Bucklands. In a prison cell with a glass front, similar to Hannibal Lecter’s in Silence of the Lambs, Phoebe is calling out for someone to answer her questions; she touches the glass and is shocked. Prue and Piper are outside Bucklands heading towards it when Piper sees a man almost spill his coffee; out of habit she freezes him. The entire area is frozen, an example of how Piper’s powers have expanded exponentially. Leo storms towards them absolutely infuriated that Piper has used her powers. He apparently doesn’t know they are from the past, and says that they agreed not to use magic for Melinda’s, their daughter, sake. A woman enters the scene and cries “witch” when she sees everything is frozen. Everything unfreezes and Leo ushers them away before the witch hunters find them. In prison, Nathaniel Pratt visits Phoebe. He reveals to her that she killed a man, and that he is on a mission to wipe out all witches. In some sort of underground hideout for many people, Piper is trying to convince Leo that she and Prue are from the past. Leo begins to berate her when she interrupts him with a passionate kiss. This proves to him that Piper and Prue really don’t know what’s going on. Leo explains that everyone in the hideout has been accused of witchcraft, although most of them are not really witches. Pratt apparently does not suspect Piper or Prue of being witches. Leo tells them that Phoebe killed Cal Green, because he hurt someone close to her. She crossed the line from protecting the innocent to punishing the guilty. They want to go and explain to Phoebe, but Leo says he’ll go for them so that they don’t have to use their powers. Piper agrees and she and Prue plan to head for Bucklands. Piper and Prue walk out of the Bucklands elevator and people immediately bombard Prue to get her attention. Prue’s assistant steps in and clears the crowd and helps Prue escape to her office, leaving Piper alone. Piper enters and it is revealed that even Prue’s assistant doesn’t know who Piper is. Prue discovers from her assistant that she never married, and that work has become her whole life. Moments later, they dismiss her assistant and pull the Book from the safe once they are certain they are alone. They search for the spell to return in time, but it’s gone. Leo orbs into the prison cell with Phoebe and tells her that she must pay for her crime. Phoebe doesn’t understand, but when Leo hands her a newspaper clipping. She receives a premonition of her killing Cal Greene with electricity shooting from her hands. Phoebe is devastated and Leo orbs out. At the manor Prue is flipping through the Book and sees that several pages have the corners turned down. Apparently their future selves have devised a plan to save Phoebe, even though many of the spells cross the line into personal gain. Leo enters, and the girls are upset to find that he didn’t bring Phoebe with him. He tells them that Phoebe has to die for the greater good. Piper is irritated by this and freezes him; while Leo is frozen Piper and Prue take the spells and leave. Outside Leo’s house, Piper and Prue are sitting in the car debating whether Piper will bind her daughter’s powers. Finally, Piper leaves the car and walks to the porch; Piper looks through the window and sees her daughter playing with a dollhouse. She glances down at the Binding Spell in her hands when Leo orbs in behind her. He tells her that binding Melinda’s powers aren’t necessary, and that he will take care of her. Piper questions their relationship, and Leo says that they couldn’t make it work because of their powers but they were very happy for a while. Piper goes back to the car and Prue is upset because she has made her whole life about work, and vows to change. Outside of prison, Prue and Piper look at a big cement wall and glance down at their blue print of the prison. They decide to make a door with one of their spells here. The two enter the prison and Piper freezes a guard that tries to stop them. When they reach Phoebe’s cell it is empty. Phoebe is tied to a pole where she will be burnt at and Nathaniel is taunting her. Nathaniel turns to the people watching, mainly news media, and reminds them all that this is a lesson for witches and that he will destroy them all. He orders the execution, but Piper and Prue break in and freeze the room just before the fire starts. They try to break Phoebe out, but she refuses. She knows she has to pay for her crimes; the executions must stop with her. Prue and Piper try to use the logic that Cal Greene deserved what he got, but Phoebe explains that “wrong thing done for the right reason, still the wrong thing.” Piper and Prue concede and step back, and unfreeze the room allowing Phoebe to burn. Back in the manor in present day Prue and Piper frantically search the manor to make sure that Phoebe didn’t really die. They don’t know exactly when they are, but Phoebe turns on the TV and sees the news report that triggered her premonition. They are back where they started. The three run to the window when they hear the dog bark and see that the man is allowing his dog to do his business in the same spot. Piper freezes him, and Prue prepares to do the same action as before when Phoebe stops her. The man outside is Nathaniel Pratt, and this may have been the moment when they began using their powers as punishment. Piper unfreezes him and they leave the window. The girls discuss what they want to change about the future: no longer being vindictive, Prue doesn’t want work to run her life, but Piper still wants to be with Leo and to have a daughter, but make the relationship work. The doorbell rings and its Leo. Piper greets him with a kiss, and Leo explains that he didn’t know why the Elders had sent him up to the attic but only knew that they needed to learn a lesson. She promises that they did. Piper makes him promise to work on their relationship always and kisses him as the scene fades out. Cast and Crew * Shannen Doherty as Prue Halliwell * Holly Marie Combs as Piper Halliwell * Alyssa Milano as Phoebe Halliwell Guest starring * Brian Krause as Leonardo Wyatt Images 1383501-charmed202 175 super.jpg Notes '''International Episode Titles: Czech Republic: Výčitky svědomí (Remorse) France: La chasse aux sorcières (Witch hunt) * This episode scored 6.3 million viewers. Trivia * We learn that Piper and Leo have a daughter called Melinda in the Future. However in future episodes their first and second child are boys (Wyatt and Chris) and in the season finale we are introduced to their third child, this time a girl (Prudence Melinda according to the companion book The Book of Three Volume 2). * The girls' powers expand tremendously in the future, Prue is capable of moving objects with ease enough to cause massive destruction with a mere afterthought, Piper's powers are strong enough to freeze everything around them for an extended period of time including birds and water while Phoebe killed a man (likely) by projecting anger into him in the form of electricity. However their grown powers (Prue's Astral Projection, Piper's Exploding power and Phoebe's Levitation are not in this future, or undiscovered at this point) edit * This is the first time the girls travel into the future. * When Leo visits the Manor for the second time once the girls return, he seems to know about what has just happened and says that all the Elders told him was that they had alesson to learn, which implies he knows about his part. However, the sisters returned to before all of that and Leo is arriving before he ever went to the attic. So how does he remember what the Elders had told him about why he was going to attic when he hadn't even been there yet? edit * At the beginning of the episode when Leo arrives to spend the day with Piper all seems well that is until their duties interrupt them, which then brings about the topic through the rest of the episode of how they always have to "talk about it later". However, in the previous episode, Piper had not heard from Leo in weeks and even gone out on a date (which turned a little hot and heavy) with the banker. Even by the end of the episode, there was no Leo. So where did all these issues as well as Leo and Piper all of a sudden being in some sort of serious relationship (or even still dating) come from? * This episode features Stroke 9's song Tail Of The Sun. * This is the second time that the girls time travel. * In the beginning of the episode, Piper sets a new carton of milk on the counter, but it seems light and empty when she sets it down. * Though Phoebe says "We're back to where we started" the events don't repeat exactly. The dog doing its business came before the news report in the opening but at the end it's the other way around. * During this episode when future Prue and future Piper are looking through the Book of Shadows at Bucklands they see that the spell they need is no longer in there, but later when future Prue is looking through the book at the manor she passes the Return Spell which was the spell they needed to get back to the present. * This is the only episode throughout the entire series, that only feature the three lead actresses in the opening credits. * If Leo was so concerned about the girls being exposed as witches then why would he orb into Phoebe's cell with a camera pointing right at it? * This is the first time that the Charmed Ones learn the consequences of using magic for personal gain. They reiterate this lesson in the season 6 episode Crime and Witch-demeanors when Phoebe loses her powers for forcing premonitions. * There are no demons in this episode. * When future Piper and Prue are walking into the attic to get the Book of Shadows, a typewriter is visible. Yet in the season 1 episode That 70's Episode they said they got rid of it. * This is the second time Shannen Doherty has had to wear a blonde wig in a role. * When Phoebe is burning at the stake, Prue and Piper are standing near together. Piper's head is on Prue's shoulder and Prue's right hand on Piper's head. One shot later, Piper's head is down and Prue has a note in her hand instead. * Pratt is inside Phoebe's execution chamber when Prue and Piper try to save her. Yet when Piper's freeze is released, he doesn't notice two women appearing out of nowhere just a couple of feet away. * When "future" Prue is looking at the "to create a door" spell, there is nothing between the pages. Seconds later, as she's flipping through the book, she finds the prison map inserted between the pages where the "create a door" spell is. * When Piper and Prue are in the future looking through the book, on the page next to the binding spell, there is another spell written there, but when Prue rips it out, there is no spell on the next page! * When Prue and Piper are about to punish the dogwalker in the end of the episode, they're all standing in the window. Phoebe says something like, "Hopefully now he won't a chain of events that ends with Phoebe being burned alive." She then exits to the left side of the window. Therefore, from inside the manor, she should be on the right side of the interior window. But when the camera cuts to the inside, she's on the left side of the window. Quotes *'Nathaniel' (on TV): Now, some people say this is a victory for me. But I say here's a victory for us all. For today a blight on everything that is good in our world, will be extinguished. Tonight, the witch will burn! ---- *'Phoebe': Prue? Piper? (Nathaniel walks up to the cell.) Nathaniel: They haven't been to visit you before. Why would they come now? No... they're gonna be as happy to get rid of you as I am. Phoebe: Who are you? Nathaniel: I'm sorry. It's been so long since our last visit. Executions are a bitch to plan. Logistics, alerting the media, gathering the kindling. Phoebe: Uh, you know, I've had a lot of time to do some thinking about why I'm here. Nathaniel: No amount of thinking will affect the outcome. Justice will be served for your crime. Phoebe: But it wasn't really a big crime, was it? Nathaniel: You are truly evil. What bigger crime is there than taking a man's life? Phoebe: I killed someone? Nathaniel: Phoebe, what is this? An attempt to stay your execution? Plead insanity? It won't work. You have five hours to live. Tick tock. Phoebe: What? Five hours? But that's not possible. Nathaniel: Well, I'm happy to see the seriousness of your crime has finally hit you. See, you represent everything I abhor. You're a threat. A danger to everything that is good and pure in our world. Phoebe: You're talking out of fear. Just because you don't understand something, doesn't make it evil. Nathaniel: No, it's you who doesn't understand. You killed a man using your power and now you're gonna die because of it. I only wish I could burn all of your kind with you. But don't worry, in time I will. This is only the beginning. ---- *'Phoebe': Hello? Hello? Could somebody please answer me. I really need to talk to someone. Okay, how about a snack? Maybe some crackers, peanuts, something? (A guy slides a tray full of slop in the room.) A tray full of goo? Hey, wait a minute. (She touches the glass and it gives her a shock.) Don't I even get a phone call? Man's Voice (from other room): Shut up, witch! ---- *'Phoebe': Well if you can't teach the dog new tricks how about the owner? Just think of the money we'd save just on carpet cleaning alone. ---- *'Phoebe': Prue, wait! Don't become a murderer too. It has to end with me. Piper: Phoebe, he was evil, he deserved what you ... Phoebe (as she starts to cry): Wrong thing done for the right reason, still the wrong thing... Our job is to protect the innocent, not punish the guilty. And I crossed that line, I know that. And now you guys have to know that too. ---- *'Phoebe': Prue, we were sent here for a reason. Maybe not to stop this like we thought. But maybe to understand why this has to happen. Why you have to let this happen. I don't want to die. But I don't want you to die because of me. (They hug) I love you. ---- *'Piper:' This guy still hasn't learned his lesson. (she freezes him) Phoebe: Apparently neither have we. Piper: But it's just a little thing. Phoebe: Yes, but once you break the small rules, it's the big ones that come next. ---- *'Phoebe': Why does everyone think that I killed someone? I wouldn't... I mean... I... I couldn't. What did I do, premonition the man to death? My power is passive. Leo: Not in the future. It's grown, it's changed. As have you. Which means unfortunatly you have to suffer the consequences. Phoebe: No... I don't believe it. Leo: Then believe what you see. ---- *'Guard' (to Piper & Prue): Freeze! Piper: Good idea. (She freezes him) ---- *'Prue' (through tears): If I died tonight, my gravestone would read ‘Here lies Prue, she worked hard’. ---- *'Phoebe': I wouldn’t. I couldn’t. What did I do, premonition the man to death? ---- *'Leo': Nobody’s gonna rescue you. Phoebe: If that is some kind of whitelighter humor, let me be the first to tell you, you are not a very funny race of people. ---- *'Piper': And you’re blonde. Prue: Yeah, strange. ---- *'Piper': TV, shut up! Mute! (The TV goes on mute). ---- *'Newsman': And now back to your regularly scheduled programming MTV’s Real World 18: On the Moon. ---- *'Piper': I wonder how I look. Phoebe: Piper, you look great, and it’s not really the time for… Piper: No, in the future. We saw ourselves as kids in the past, and now we’re going 10 years in the future. All that vanquishing, think of all the wear and tear. ---- *'Phoebe': An eye for an eye, a shoe for a shoe. ---- *'Piper' (hearing barking in the background): That couldn’t be. Phoebe: Oh, I hope it is. ---- *'Phoebe': What did you buy? Piper: Doody. Prue: We weren’t out of that. ---- *'Prue': Leo, listen to me the two of us, the Prue and Piper you see before you, are from the past, from 10 years ago. Piper: So we have no idea what is going on. Leo: Don't even lie to me. Phoebe is set to die today and I only hope that this madness dies with her. These people are in danger because of the witch trials she started. Prue: How, how did she start them? Leo: You know, I don't know what you hope to accomplish by pretending not to know. (Piper kisses Leo) Leo: You haven't kissed me like that since... Piper: Since this morning, 1999, remember? We were supposed to meet. You had to leave. I went up to the attic and this is where I came, the future and if you don't believe me, at least believe what you feel. Trust that! ---- *'Prue': He's gonna stay frozen, right? Piper: If he knows what's good for him, he'll stay frozen. ---- *'Piper': Hey, stranger. Leo: Is that what I am now? Piper: Playing hooky? Leo: No, they're making me work tonight so I've got the afternoon off. Piper: The old 'I gotta save the world' excuse again? Leo: Like you've never had to use it. Piper: Ahh... Leo: You're about to use it. ---- *'Prue': Did he see you? Piper: So what if he did, what's he gonna d Category:Charmed episodes/issues Category:Season 2